Donor Retention
How to write a donation acknowledgment letter
Letter writing can be an art form and when someone donates to your organization—be it online or otherwise—your letters should have standardized formats to ensure timely receipt and acknowledgment. The best donation thank-you letters should include: Personalized salutation Decide how you will address your donors. First name only? Suffix with last name? Full name? Much […]
Want larger gifts? Focus on solid donor recognition
Major gift recruitment starts with relationship building; it’s a process that can blossom over years of connecting with donors who may have started as volunteers, slowly moved to one-time gifts, then larger monthly donations until finally, they make a sizeable donation to your nonprofit. The process to ensure your major donors receive adequate recognition is […]
4 areas of focus for effective thank you emails
Proper etiquette teaches us that thank you notes are essential when receiving a gift. As more donors move to online giving, so should your automated email thank you process. But with all nonprofits setting up email thank you letters, how can you be sure that your donors feel valued and nurtured? Rather than an email […]
Losing your monthly donors? 3 ways to keep them
What is the pulse of your monthly donors? Do they know the impact of their dollars? Do you follow up routinely to acknowledge their commitment and support of your nonprofit? While 45% of donors have enrolled in some sort of monthly giving program, giving up to 42% more each year than those who are not […]
Customer service tips for the nonprofit world
When you think of your nonprofit organization, do you think customer service as a part of what sets you apart? If you dive deep into it, nonprofits are in the service industry and although there are differences in how operations work when compared to for-profit companies, excellent customer service is a value-add. By concentrating on […]
The importance of donor retention: How to calculate and track
What is a donor retention rate? Simply put, your donor retention rate speaks to the percentage of donors who give to your organization on a consecutive basis—year over year. The higher the retention rate, the more donors you have that continue to support your nonprofit each year. The lower the retention rate, the harder you […]
Spring cleaning: Freshen up your donor database
Spring. A time to refresh, renew and reorganize. Many of us get that “spring cleaning” bug this time of year and as a nonprofit, this can be a great opportunity to reassess current processes and do some spring cleaning of your own related to donor records and databases. A donor database or CRM (customer relationship […]
Donor retention steps after your fundraising event
The fundraising event process has many components – from location and attendee lists to entertainment, donation landing pages and everything in between. When you plan your fundraising events, do you also account for donor follow-up and retention? Here are five ways to create a successful donor retention process following a fundraising event. Know your thank […]
Customize your CRM: Using personal data to optimize donor touchpoints
Creating strategic touchpoints throughout the year with your donors (or prospects) is an important part of the fundraising process. While the best way to retain donors is by building strong relationships with them, how do you ensure you readily track that information? A donor CRM is a great place to start. What’s more? With a […]
Thank you emails made easy
In 2016, we gave you the anatomy of a great thank you email. Those general aspects of thank you emails still apply when reaching out to donors to let them know you appreciate their gifts. Today, let’s take that a step further and talk about the layout of those thank you emails and what you […]
12 ways to show thanks to donors
It’s the season of thanks and for nonprofits, that means donor outreach and recognition. November is a great month to reiterate how much you appreciate your donors but how can you make your nonprofit stand out among the rest with your donor recognition program? Plan for continued recognition throughout the year. This month, we’ve put […]
Retaining donors in crisis
What we are learning through COVID-19 is that the impacts of this pandemic range depending on race, gender, location and industry. While some donors may have the ability to maintain giving levels, others may not have the same financial comforts to do so at this time. What some have even found is that at the […]